About Edward Lemke

Prof. Dr. Edward A Lemke

 

On 1st of January 2018 Edward Lemke started his professorship for synthetic biophysics at the faculty of biology at Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz and was appointed as adjunct director at the Institute for Molecular Biology (IMB). Lemke is one of the leading experts in the field of intrinsically disordered protein research, as which he also led an Emmy-Noether-group at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg and won an ERC Consolidator Grant in 2015 as well as an ERC Advanced Grant in 2022. Through innovation in the methodical approach and the combination of chemical, biophysical and cell biological expertise an important contribution to the field was made. Lemke is the spokesperson of the DFG priority program for molecular mechanisms of phase separation (SPP2191) and as a GFK-Fellow he will pave new ways for the interdisciplinary life science research in Mainz with his work on the dark proteome

Professional experience
2019 –Co-founder and Consultant, Araxa Biosciences, since 2020 Veraxa Biosciences AG
2018 –Professor JGU Mainz, Faculty of Biology and joint appointed with Department of Chemistry
2018 –Adjunct Director IMB
2018-2020Visiting Group Leader EMBL
2009 – 2017Independent group leader at the EMBL Heidelberg, Structural and Computational Biology Unit and Cell Biology and Biophysics Unit
Scientific training
2005 – 2008 Joint research associate (postdoctorate) Department of Chemistry and Department of Molecular Biology at the Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA, USA
2002 – 2005 PhD (Dr. rer. nat.) Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry (and University of Goettingen), Department Membrane Biophysics (3 month bridging postdoc)
University education
1999 – 2001 Master of Science, University of Oklahoma
1997 – 2001 Diploma, Technical University of Berlin
Honors and awards
2024BPS 2025 Society Fellow
2022Elected EMBO member
2019ERC Advanced Grant (LS domain)
2018Gutenberg Research College Fellow
2017FEBS anniversary award
2016Chica and Heinz Schaller award for biomedical research
2015Young Investigator Award of the International Chemical Biology Society
2015 – 2020ERC consolidator grant (PE domain)
2013MRN Innovation award (jointly to C. Schultz and E. Lemke)
2010 – 2016Emmy Noether Programme of the DFG
2006 – 2008Feodor Lynen postdoctoral fellowship of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
2003 – 2005PhD fellowship of the Boehringer Ingelheim Fond
2002Erwin-Stephan award for excellent and fast studies, Technical University of Berlin
2001Scholarship of the Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes
1999 – 2000Oversea-scholarship of the Technical University of Berlin
1998Klaus-Koch-scholarship for excellent studies, Technical University of Berlin
Other activities

Scientific conference and workshop organization

2022Co-organizer EMBO Chemical Biology Conference 2022
2022Main organizer EMBO/EMBL-Symposium on Phase Separation 
2018Co-organizer EMBO Chemical Biology Conference 2018
2018Main organizer EMBO/EMBL-Symposium on Phase Separation
2015Main organizer EMBO Advanced Fluorescence Spec/Microscopy Practical Course
2015Elected Co-chair, IDP Subgroup of the Biophysical Society, annual meeting
2014Main organizer EMBO Chemical Biology conference 2014
2011Co-organizer and teacher 1st EMBO Chemical Biology Practical Course
2009Co-organizer Symposium on “Light Microscopy meets Structural Biology”

Editorial activities/review panel member

2017 –Editorial Board member, Journal of Molecular Biology
2017Editor Methods in Molecular Biology, Noncanonical amino acids
2016 –Editorial Advisory Board, Cell Chemical Biology
2016Editor Methods in Molecular Biology Book on Genetic Code Expansion
2015 –Editorial Advisory Board, ChemBiochem (Wiley)
2015 – 2017Editorial Advisory Board, RSC Molecular Biosystems
2014Guest-Editor, special issue on Genetic code expansion (ChemBioChem, Wiley)

Coordinating Functions

2020 – 2022Elected Co-Chair and subsequent Chair, IDP sunbgroupof the Biophysical Society
2021 –Study Representative (Studienbeauftragter) Msc Biology
2018 –Speaker DFG Priority Program 2191
2011 – 2016Module Coordinator EMBL Predoc Course
2010 – 2019EMBL Advanced Light Microscopy Facility Steering Committee